


Winners and Losers

by halcyyonn



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Comfort, F/M, Fencing, Fluff, adrigami
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:14:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23942911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/halcyyonn/pseuds/halcyyonn
Summary: Adrien is feeling worn out from everything happening in his life and Kagami comforts him after a fencing match.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Kagami Tsurugi
Kudos: 16





	Winners and Losers

Fencing foils clashed as Kagami and Adrien danced around each other, trying to best the other. While Adrien was having to put much more effort into the match, Kagami was moving with ease, not even breaking a sweat. This is what she had trained for her entire life, she wasn’t going to lose easily. 

Adrien was the only person she had ever lost to, and she wasn’t going to repeat the mistake. Even if the mistake wasn’t on her part, the winner of this match would be clear to anyone. It was her, Kagami Tsurugi. The next generation of her family of fencing legends.

She would not disappoint them. She couldn’t.

Adrien stepped back away from Kagami's swing, the tip of the foil missing him with only millimetres of space spare. That was too close. He was used to being the best, was used to the expectations Gabriel always had, and losing was something unfamiliar. Gabriel Agreste’s son did not lose.

Adrien Agreste was a whole different story, though. He wasn’t good at winning, especially when it came to real life. He couldn’t win Ladybug’s heart, he couldn’t even fight against his father’s rules. He was far into the category of ‘loser’ by now. 

The only times he would win were when he was Chat Noir, and even then, it was considered Ladybug’s victory. He couldn’t purify akumas, and he couldn’t fix the damage they caused. His powers, despite being so strong, were more a sidekick collection than something a solo hero could use.

Kagami lunged again, taking advantage of Adrien’s distracted state. Trying to recover, Adrien moved forward too, throwing his arm forward. 

They both crashed into each other, flying to the ground. Adrien wrapped his arm around Kagami's waist and moved so he landed on the ground first, taking most of the impact. Kagami landed on top of his chest seconds later, rolling away instantly.

She was back on her feet in seconds, ready to lunge again.

“I yield! You win, Kagami.” Adrien dropped his foil and showed Kagami the palms of his hands in surrender. Once he had been on the ground for a few seconds, exhaustion had started to creep in, consuming him. He hadn’t realised until now how long they had been trying to best the other, trying to gain the upper hand. Now it all crashed against him, threatening to pull him into the abyss.

He was tired, not just physically, but mentally. Everything just seemed to be stacking up against him. Him against the world. Even though Chat had Ladybug to support him, Adrien felt disconnected. He felt disconnected from his father, Nathalie, Gorilla, and that was just in his house. 

Alya and Marinette had met each other days before he was even allowed to go to school, and they both hated him for a short while. Even Nino had been cold to him for a while because of the situation with Chloe. He had even distanced himself from Chloe at her own party.

His friends cared about him, that was obvious. From the messages on the one year anniversary of his mother’s death to inviting him to the picnic in the park, they cared. And they all showed that in their own ways.

Kagami, however, was different. She was a weird mix of telling Adrien exactly how she felt and showing him that she cared. She had protected him from akumas, but also challenged him in so many areas. His father also liked Kagami, while other people he was less… accepting of.

“Adrien, is everything alright? You seem distant and it’s making me concerned.” Kagami pulled her mask off, looking down at Adrien. “You have never given up during a match before. I can tell something is not right.”

Pulling himself into a sitting position, Adrien yanked his mask off his head and dropped it into his lap, grinding the heels of his hands into his eyes. “I’m fine Kagami. Don’t worry about it.”

Kagami mulled over his words for a few moments, disbelief filling her eyes. “If you say so. Would you like a rematch?”

“I don’t think I have the energy. I just feel exhausted, and it doesn’t even have that much to do with fencing.” Adrien’s head dropped, his shoulders sagging. “I know you probably don’t want to hear me talk about it.”

Even though Kagami didn’t enjoy people making assumptions about what she was thinking or how she was feeling, she sat down in front of Adrien. “You shouldn’t make assumptions about things like that.”

“You don’t like assumptions, either? First you said to avoid hesitation, now to avoid assuming anything. Is there anything else you think I should avoid?”

“Changing the subject. You should be more forward with your emotions, otherwise people will hurt you because they don’t know how you truly feel.” Kagami picked her mask up and examined it, looking for any scratches it might have obtained recently.

“Are you saying you want me to complain about my issues to you?”

“Who else are you going to speak to? I am one of the only people you see regularly, and I have noticed that you aren’t particularly close to your father.” Kagami crossed her legs and placed her mask into her lap. “I won’t tell anyone. I’m good at keeping secrets.”

Adrien thought about it for a moment. She was right. No one else was really in the same circumstances as he was, with his father’s expectations and the longing for freedom. Kagami did. “I guess I’m just tired of everything that’s happening. I keep getting torn in so many directions by so many people. 

“I don’t want to disappoint them all, and yet I don’t even feel like myself anymore. I feel like I’m pretending to be someone I’m not, and that someone is going to find out I’m fake and everything is going to come crashing down around me. I just feel like such a loser, especially compared to you. You’re amazing at so many things.”

Not knowing what to say, Kagami reached out and placed a hand on Adrien’s shoulder. “You’re one of the most genuine people I know, and definitely not a loser. You’re compassionate and kind all the time, to everyone, and that’s more important than being able to ice skate well.”

“But how many people do you know? To be sure I’m so genuine?”

Refusing to be hurt by the offhanded comment, Kagami stood back up. She turned and started to walk away, knowing their fencing time was nearly up. “I know enough people, Adrien. And if you don’t believe me, I don’t know what you will believe.”

Standing up quickly, Adrien followed after her. “Kagami, I’m sorry. I didn’t think about what I was saying, and I don’t want you to think of me like that. Don’t hate me?”

“I could never.” Spinning on her heel, Kagami flicked her foil in her hand and stabbed it straight into Adrien’s chest. “I win. See you tomorrow, Adrien. Maybe you can win tomorrow’s match.”

“I can’t believe I fell for that.” Adrien shook his head and laughed, looking up at the clock quickly. Kagami's car would arrive in a few minutes.

“Neither can I.” Giving Adrien a smile that seemed to light up the room, which she had been practising, Kagami stood up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. Without giving Adrien any time to fathom what she had done, Kagami was gone.

Adrien stood still in shock for a few seconds, before snapping back to reality and scooping his mask up. “Wow.”


End file.
